Tribe dedicating fireworks to Coast Guard men, women, museum

Published July 08. 2014 1:50PM | Updated July 08. 2014 1:57PM

Mashantucket — The Mashantucket Pequot Tribe announced today it will dedicate its annual Mashantucket Pequot Fireworks Extravaganza - the annual display at Sailfest in New London - to the proposed National Coast Guard Museum and “the men and women of the Coast Guard.”

The fireworks display, among the biggest in the Northeast, is scheduled for Saturday, the second day of the city’s three-day Sailfest celebration. It will mark the 22nd straight year the tribe has sponsored the fireworks.

“We know that the United States Coast Guard has been such an important part in protecting our country that we feel it only proper to recognize all they do for us as Americans,” Rodney Butler, the tribe’s chairman, said in a statement.

John Johnson, treasurer of the National Coast Guard Museum Association, which is raising money for the museum project, thanked Butler for the dedication.

“It's an honor to be recognized by a nation that has done wonders to celebrate its rich culture and traditions through the Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center,” Johnson said. “We look forward to working with you in our future efforts to celebrate the storied traditions and heroic accomplishments of our brave Coast Guard men and women.”

The Coast Guard museum is to be built on a city-owned parcel adjacent to City Pier at the north end of Waterfront Park.